OH MY GOD I NEED MORE NOW WTF IM OBSESSSED I NEED THE FULL BOOK TO BE RELEASED ASAP I'm begging you!!!!!!!!

Empire of the Vampire is one of my favorite books. The emotions the author made me feel were so intense and several times I came close to throwing the book with tears in my eyes (but we do not do that because books are precious and we do not hurt them). I think it's amazing when an author can get strong reactions like that out of readers. It shows how well they have developed the characters that we as readers care so much we want to dive into the book and protect them.

Reading this sample has just made the wait for Empire of the Damned even more painful. I was torn between wanting to read it and satisfying my hunger for more and holding off until I could consume the whole thing.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Jay Kristoff for letting me read this sample, even if the wait is now worse!

Empire of the Damned (EotD) cements Jay Kristoff’s place as a modern-day master storyteller.

Continuing the events from Empire of the Vampire (EotV), we find the last Silversaint, Gabriel de Léon, recounting his tale to vampire historian, Jean-Françoise. Told with the unique Kristoffian blend of bluntness, suspense, twists and turns, gory details, and dark humor, there is no choice but for the reader to continue turning the pages, devouring the story with the hunger of a newly birthed vampire.

Another great novel by Kristoff. I enjoyed it as much as I did the first one. I think I read this one faster than the first book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read. All opinions are my own.

I loved Empire of the Vampire and was excited to have the chance to read Empire of the Damned. It continues Gabriel's story and develops several other characters along the way. I knew this wasn't a complete text, but dang! That cliffhanger where the ARC stopped! Good thing I'd already planned to buy this because now I *have* to know what happens.

This is my most anticipated read of 2024 and damn it if the sampler only made the wait harder - this book is just as awe-inspiring and fantastic as the last! It truly is a blessing to be gifted with vampires who are terrifying and protagonists that are complex.

I will continue to consider Jay Kristoff books an instant buy and look forward to what he imagines next.

Just a mere sampler and I’m already hooked and addicted. Simply can’t wait enough to get my hands on it.

I received the sampler ARC of Empire of the Damned and read it in one sitting, I could not put it down. The story picks up where we left off at the end of Empire of the Vampire and just takes off. Kristoff, as usual, gives his readers a great summary so that you can easily immerse yourself back into the story without trying to figure out who everyone is again and what happened to them, I cannot wait to read the rest of the story when the book is published!

Thank you to Netgalley & St. Martin's Press for the eARC sampler in exchange for an honest review! Empire of the Damned is out on March 12th!

PHEW this is a juicy read!!

My favourite thing about Empire of the Vampire was the exciting pace it set. It never slowed down, never dragged through any moment, and the sequel is definitely holding up to that. Even only reading half the book I can see that this is story grows even more epic as it progresses.

I devoured this sampler, I couldn’t put it down, and now I am DYING for the rest of the book. I wish I had waited to read this closer to the release date because the wait will be agony.

Thank you to NetGalley for the e-arc!

Thanks so much for this sampler. I could not be more excited for this book! It's everything we have come to love from Jay Kristoff and then some. This has already been preordered.

I knew when I signed up to write this review that it wouldn’t be easy to write a review for just the sampler. My motivations for requesting it, I confess, were entirely selfish. I simply wanted to read as much of the book now as I possibly could. Having finished the sampler, I am beyond excited to finish the book.
In Empire of the Damned, Jay Kristoff continues to paint a dark and vivid world. Dark, both in terms of the lighting and the subject matter. The story is one of hope amidst tragedy, but due to the narration structure, one that is presented to the reader as having already failed. Though, personally, I believe Gabriel has no motivation to be honest to Jean-François and is skilled enough to tell him lies without Jean-François picking up on all of them. It’s entirely possible there is more hope to be found in the story present than is presented to the reader.
I like that this book spends more time in the story present than I remember there being in the first book. By story present, I mean the scenes in Sul Adair. Gabriel is a character in the story present languishing in a cell in Sul Adair literally telling the story past as dialogue. The story past is Gabriel’s journey with Dior, etc. I like that this book spends more time in the story present because it makes it feel like more like a part of the story and not just a framing device. Jean-François feels more like an actual character too.
I’ve enjoyed watching the story progress so far and learning more about the world and its history. I want to know more.
I also enjoyed, despite the tragic nature of the book, how funny it is. Gabriel and Dior especially have entertaining banter.
It’s been interesting to watch the character relationships develop, especially considering almost every major character from the first book is dead. The bond between Gabriel and Dior is one of the driving forces of the story. I also enjoyed seeing the evolution of the relationship between Gabriel and Celine.
I will cut off my review here for now, as I’ve only had the opportunity to read the review sampler, not the entire book. Based on what I’ve read so far, this book is amazing.

I received an advanced copy (of the review sampler) for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and net galley for the ARC of this book. all opinions are my own.
Due to the current SMP boycott, I will not post my thoughts on this story until the concerns are addressed. At that time, I will be happy to post my full review.

Take a little Interview with the Vampire, mix it with a zombie apocalypse and stir it into a grimdark fantasy, and you have Jay Kristoff’s epic Empire of the Vampire series. The writing is melodramatic with purple prose, and a lot of swearing and testosterone, but that is what it is: grimdark. Extremely cinematic with intricate world-building, short chapters, and a propulsive pace. The characters are yes, over-the-top, but they are meant to be. Now I only had a sampler to read, so I can’t leave a proper review, but from what I read, this seems to be just as good as the first book (which I read a third of, in order to be able to judge this one). I am not the right audience for this series (not a big grimdark fan) but I completely get the enthusiasm for these books.

I will post my review once ST Martin's Press addresses their racist employee. I apologize, but I stand strongly with these beliefs and will wait until they address the issue.

I loved every minute of this sample, it was just as good as the first, but I can’t wait until the full book comes out!! Jay’s writing was amazing as always, with witty and hilarious characters, intense action and an exciting plot!

I had no idea this was book #2…
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read the sampler. Liked it so far can’t wait for it to come out!

Omg I just want to read the full ARC!! Can't wait to see where this story goes!! Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC.

Quick teaser read. I can see why this is a fan favorite. It peeked my interest and had me reading book one in order to know what was going on. Interesting story that took me out of my comfort zone that's for sure!

Didn't realize this was only a sample, but what I read makes me very excited to keep reading this series.

My feedback on this is the fact that I have learned not to request a sampler from NetGalley going forward. Don't get me wrong, this is an excellent book and part of an excellent series, but it was like getting to the end of the book and finding out there was a huge cliffhanger. Which it was. Iin part because we only got to read SOME of the book....and now have to wait for the rest. Ugh!

So, if you have read the first book, you will be thrilled to know that it wasn't a fluke. This story is getting even better.

If you haven't read the first book, that is your first mistake. Don't start here. Go find book 1 and go from there. That way you can be waiting with bated breath for this book to come out in 2024.

And if you have not read the first book, you can thank me now.

Your welcome.